


Fallout

by MsLotte



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Minor Thirteenth Doctor/River Song, Post-Episode: s12e10 The Timeless Children, Post-Season/Series 12, Reflection, Reunions, brief appearance from 11, prison break - Freeform, thirteen gets a hug
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-12
Updated: 2020-12-12
Packaged: 2021-02-28 16:48:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 17,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23120497
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MsLotte/pseuds/MsLotte
Summary: The Doctor's stuck in jail with nothing but her thoughts...and we all know how she gets when she has no one to talk to. She tries to process all that happened on Gallifrey, but to not much avail.A prison break and some chaotic, flirty energy from Jack helps bring her back down to Earth, figuratively and literally.
Relationships: Thirteenth Doctor/River Song
Comments: 119
Kudos: 234





	1. Reflection

**Author's Note:**

> Doctor Who and all affiliated characters belong to the BBC. The only thing I own is my ~imagination~.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First chapter is basically all reflection, future chapter(s?) will be more action and dialogue-driven. Enjoy!

Ten years. Ten. Or was it 11? Maybe more. The Doctor’s typical perfect sense of time passing was a big clogged up by the fact that she was locked up in a jail cell made out of some weird space rock (not to judge the rock, she’s sure in any other situation it’s a perfectly nice type of rock) that messed with her head. Yeah, that’s it…the only reason she was disoriented. She was sure it had nothing to do with her grappling with the fact that she doesn’t know her past anymore. Nope, definitely the rock’s fault. 

Ten years wasn’t all that long; she was centuries-old (even without considering the however-many years she spent in the confession dial…). The problem was, she was stuck. Stuck in a tiny cell with nothing to do but think. And think she did. But first, the Doctor tried everything she could imagine to get out of the cell: waving her sonic, which the Judoon had not bothered to take, around and scanning everything; reading the stars to calculate where she was; calling for help; and eventually go so far as to just hit the walls to see if by some miracle they broke apart. They did not. 

Clearly, they knew what they were doing when designing a “maximum security” prison. She still wondered what the heck she was doing in there; was it something to do with Ruth-Doctor’s actions? Well, that’s just mean! The Doctor didn’t even remember being Ruth, let along what she did! 

…well, that wasn’t a very good defense for one’s actions, now was it? She decided to put those thoughts on hold. 

Occasionally she’d get some food, but it just appeared. Some kind of teleport, with no one to interact with. Not a soul. Not a murmur. Nothing. That was fine…yeah. Totally fine! The food was most definitely not fine, though. 

The prison didn’t provide any kind of entertainment; no games, no movies, no math problems, no science experiments, no karaoke buses. Terrible service! And so she sat. Sat, and thought. Sat, and thought, and got sucked down the rabbit-hole of the question “Who am I?”. “Ruth” had reminded her that the Doctor constantly reinvented herself; made herself better, improved from the past. However, that appeared to be a bandaid solution that did not fully prevent her from spiraling down the scary path of reconciling her current self and the history she knew, with a past she had no memory of. The Doctor feared what she did in the name of this “Division” or what her connection with it even was. She’d done plenty of bad stuff—usually while trying to be good, mind you!—in this timeline, so she was sure there were plenty of skeletons in the closet that she was completely unaware of. How many people had she hurt? How many companions had she lost? How many worlds had she destroyed? She was sure there was good in her past, but not knowing was killing her. Or not. The Doctor grappled with the fact that she might be immortal on top of all this nonsense…

She’d have to apologize to Jack.

The Doctor didn’t think that she was a fixed point in time, at least. But being immortal, or having endless regenerations, was a lot to cope with. And she had been so judgmental of Jack! Oh blimey, he was going to have a field day if he ever found out about her predicament. Could she even call it a predicament? A situation? A status? A blight? She really ought to stop thinking aloud…not that anyone was around to hear her. 

The loneliness was tough. She was used to her fam in the TARDIS, the constant chatter, her explaining complicated science to them only to be rewarded with blank stares and baffled looks. Alternatively, seeing their faces light up at the things and places she showed them…it never got old. She missed them. The Doctor started to feel bad about keeping them so far away, so out of the loop, ignorant of what she was going through because she was scared to open up and be vulnerable again. Because…because…what if she lost them? Like Bill, like Clara, like so many others? 

But that was a lame excuse. She wouldn’t have invited them along for this long if she didn’t feel so attached to them. Her fam deserved better; really, the Doctor deserved better as well. Who was she kidding? Keeping her friends at a distance didn’t do her a whole lot of good in the long run, now did it? It never worked, anyway. She thought back to River, and how hard the younger versions of herself tried to stay distant because of the pain. But she always missed River. 

That train of thought made her think back to her older companions. All of them. She had the time, didn’t she? The Doctor reflected on all the times she could have been kinder, could have been tougher, could have been more truthful, could have been…the list went on. She’s really got to work on this habit of rambling off lists. Probably was annoying for anyone listening…oh, right. Not applicable. She was not good with silence. 

Even less so than with the Silence. She couldn’t even remember what they looked like, but she was sure they were ugly! So many ugly monsters out there…were some of her old regenerations ugly? Not that it really mattered, but…wait. The memories she had of her childhood (well, the new memories)…the boy was ginger! Had she finally been ginger and not even remembered? Or…snap! Was the fact that she used to be ginger the reason she was so fixated on being ginger again now? She sighed. Time was complicated. Or, wibbly-wobbly, as her sand-shoed regeneration would have said. She really needed to get out of this place, she was starting to revert to old habits, and she wouldn’t have that! Next think you know, she’d be calling things “cool” again. 

The Doctor thought about happy times as well: traveling with amazing people (and aliens) throughout time, solving mysteries, saving people, witnessing history (and sometimes accidentally being involved, though she swears it’s never on purpose!). She’d met so many people throughout her lives, and those are just the lives she remembered!

But darkness often overshadowed these lighter tendrils of memory, though. Dark thoughts beyond what she had unknowingly done in her past. She thought back to the Master, how he had so clearly wanted her to end everything. She was sure there was more to his hatred than, well, hate. He was just as broken—if not more so—than her, and she couldn’t help him. The Doctor had been so wrapped up with the revelations about her own past that she couldn’t see past the evil plotting of The Master, her oldest friend and enemy. He was shouting for help, and yet it fell on deaf ears. Why would he have left the Death Particle for her to find? Why didn’t he mention his time as Missy, working alongside old-Scotsman Doctor and Bill? She played with the idea that maybe this Master, this broken one, had come before Missy. But no. Clearly the Matrix had done irreversible damage, and the Master didn’t have the support system or optimism that the Doctor had. She wondered if a hug would have helped? Probably would’ve made him want to kill her even more, to be totally honest, but she could have tried. Actually, she wasn’t even sure she was the hugging type, she hadn’t hugged anyone in a long time. She shook her head to clear her brains. The Doctor and the Master. The two remaining Time Lords. Was she even a Time Lord anymore? Was she the Time Lord? Well that name would just be rubbish. 

Ten years sitting in a cell, well, pacing and jumping and rolling around in a cell, and she just couldn’t figure the Master out. The Doctor doubted he was really dead. He never stayed dead, just like her. Or maybe she just deep, down hoped he wasn’t dead…so she could kill him herself for all the pain he put her through! No. No, that wasn’t it. She sort of hoped he was alive so that she had someone to talk to about this all. He was the only other person who could even begin to understand what she was going through. But he destroyed Gallifrey! When it came to the Master, why was nothing straightforward? 

Speaking of which…her regeneration on Trenzalore! What was up with that? Did the Time Lords not know she had seemingly infinite regenerations? Were they—what did the humans call it—trolling her? Or, him, at the time. Well, that would be rude. Perhaps, if the information was so deeply hidden on Gallifrey, no one knew her origins. Or maybe they did, and that’s why they were so annoyed with her running off, jumping from planet to planet all the time, literally, and ignoring home politics. 

But now…now, she’ll never know. She knew, deep down in her hearts, that the Time Lords were really gone this time. Sure, the Master probably survived, but her home, the home that she apparently helped create, the home that tortured her and experimented on her and—

Well, that’s a lot of baggage to unpack, and clearly ten years of thinking wasn’t enough. The Doctor needed more time, but even more than that, she needed her friends, her fam…and maybe some custard creams. Prison food was rubbish (it might actually be rubbish from the look and smell of it), and she just really wanted a good snack. She ate the jelly babies hidden in her coat pocket pretty early on, and the other assortment of food she kept discovering in her other pockets, but since then it’s just been…gruel. Gray, goopy, gross gruel. The Doctor smirked at her alliteration. Maybe she’d become a poet like Byron! She’d make a great poet…

It was some day during that 10th (11th?) year—the Doctor really hated being unsure about the time, it was very off-brand for her—that there came a knock on the wall. The wall that had the tiny little window-thing looking out into the universe. The tiny window-thing that now had a friendly face looking through it at her, grinning from ear-to-ear. 

Guess she’d get to apologize to Jack after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot of the Doctor's internal thoughts I wrote are inspired by some of the commentary I've read about the finale and the season as a whole. I love that the DW community has seemingly awoken from a brief hibernation after this season, and the amount of discussion around the characters/plot/history has been so fun. So, this is sort of my contribution!
> 
> This is my first fic after 10 years. I'm writing both because I absolutely loved season 12 and it got me back on the bandwagon, but also because I'm so stressed about the state of the world that I just said the heck with it! And wrote this to distract myself, haha. 
> 
> Anyway. I might add in more characters later on, because I love reunions, but also because I'm not totally sure where I'm going with the plot. But there will be one, promise, even if it is light! I really just want 13 to have a good day, even if it's a bumpy road getting there. 
> 
> Please let me know what you think! I've only been writing academic papers the past few months, so it was fun to stretch my creative writing muscles. Thanks for reading!


	2. Plan? What plan?

She should have expected the flirting. 

Jack couldn’t even wait until they were face-to-face. Peeking through the glowing bars covering the window, he gave her a once-over. 

“And I thought your friend Graham looked good! Man, Doctor, you’ve really outdone yourself! I gotta fan myself!” 

Same old Jack.

“How’d you know it was me?” The Doctor’s voice came out rougher than expected; she guessed she’d switched to internal monologues over talking to herself longer ago than she thought. 

“‘Course it’s you, Doctor! Who else would be holed up here, looking all sad?” 

“Oi! I don’t look that sad!” She paused. “Do I?” 

“Oh, my dear, you look a mess. A gorgeous mess, but a mess all the same” Jack rambled on in his distinctly American accent. The Doctor realized she’d missed him more than she’d let on.

“Wait.” The Doctor blinked a few times. “How are you doing that? How are you outside my window? How did you even find me?” 

“Bit Romeo-esque isn’t it?” he winked at her. “I’m on top of my ship, got an oxygen bubble to protect me. I’ve been traveling a bit; heard some rumors floating around the universe about some legendary figure being hold up here. Pieced things together. Plus, you weren’t answering my calls.” He winked at her. “Thought you might be in need of a helping-hand!” 

Examining the window’s bars, Jack questioned the Doctor about the cell. “Any idea what it’s made of? Have you tried getting out—oh, who am I kidding, of course you have! But what have you tried? Do you have a sonic?” 

“Usually I’m the one asking all the questions, it’s weird being on the other end of things” the Doctor mused. “Is it always this annoying?” 

“Well excuse me! I’m just trying to help an old friend bust outta prison! I can turn my ship around if you’d like…” He was fishing, and the Doctor couldn’t help but take the bait.

“No, no, no need for that.” She flailed her hands about, trying to highlight her urgency. “I need help, you’re right. Now stop smirking, and help!” 

“Tell me all you can.”

The Doctor proceeded to describe the features of the strange rock the cell seemed to be made of. Jack had to cut her off, as she went into a bit too much detail about her feelings regarding the material. She also gave a quick summary of all her failed attempts at escape and how there’d been no contact with another living creature during her time in the cell. When she finished, Jack was left staring at her in what looked like a mix of shock and pity.

“Ten years. Man…that’s rough.” Jack ran his hand through his hair. “Must’ve been tough for such a talkative person as yourself!” he said, apparently to lighten the mood a bit. The joke fell a bit flat, though, as the Doctor nodded in affirmation. 

“You’ve no idea, Jack. It’s been a living hell being trapped in my own memories…” she shook her head, trying to stop herself from getting lost in her thoughts again. Jack was here, and she might finally get out of this horrid place. Focus, Doctor, focus, she thought fiercely. Snapping back to the present, Jack didn’t seem to pick up on her brief internal struggle. Or maybe he did, and was just being polite. Either way, he refocused on the task at hand: busting her out.

“I’ve probably only got a few more minutes, if even that, before they notice my cloaked ship under your window…what should we do?”

“You came here with no plan?” the Doctor exclaimed, getting frustrated.

“Hey, don’t yell at the heroic, good-looking man who’s here to rescue the damsel in distress!” 

“I swear, Jack, if you make one more dumb gender joke, I’m gonna—“

Jack smirked, telling her “Sorry, can’t resist.” He started fiddling with something out of the Doctor’s sight, which was severely impaired by the tiny window. “Hold on a sec, Doctor, I’ve got an idea” he proudly stated, and promptly disappeared.

The Doctor stared out the now empty window. She had a bad feeling about this rescue plan…

There was a knock on the wall, again. But this time, it was behind her. Did Jack get inside the prison? She carefully turned around and walked up to the wall, pressing her ear against the cool stone. 

“Doctor, you in there?” came Jack’s muffled voice.

“Yes!” The Doctor reflected that she should give Jack more credit. He managed to break into a high-security prison with a vortex-manipulator, it looked like. That was slightly impressive, she had to admit. 10 points to Jack! Oh, she’d missed giving points. And point-giving made her think of the fam again…no. Not now, she told herself. She could think of the fam after she got out of here. 

“Now what?” she replied quietly through the wall, though she wasn’t sure she even needed to be quiet as no one ever acknowledged her yelling…

“So clearly the sonic doesn’t work, but what if I blow up the wall?” 

“You brought explosives?” 

“Of course! Not a fun night out without ‘em” Jack replied, a smile in his voice. 

“You do realize the guards probably notice an explosion, right?” She could feel Jack rolling his eyes behind the wall.

“Of course I thought of that. We’ll have to run, just like the good ol’ days, Doctor!” There were some strange noises following this statement as, the Doctor assumed, Jack set up the bomb. Dynamite? Who knows what Jack had up his sleeve. She took a step back. And then a few more.

“Ready?” Jack shouted.

“As ready as one can be in this situation!” 

With little fanfare, the wall blew apart.

The Doctor, despite being the furthest away from the now missing wall she could be, realized just how small her cell was when she flew back into the wall behind her from the force of the explosion. Debris flew every which way, covering the Doctor and slicing through her clothes. She could feel gashes all over her body and face.

Jack burst into the room, taking in the destruction. “Well, that worked a bit better than expected.” His eyes travelled down to the Doctor, struggling to arise from the mess around her. Brushing off the dust now covering her, she shakily got to her feet. Jack rushed over, supporting her by the arm.

“Sheesh, sorry Doctor. Didn’t realize how effective that explosion would be. Guess I got my money’s worth…You okay? You got cut up pretty bad.” 

Jack’s worried expression weirdly warmed the Doctor. Having someone worry about her after so long was a nice feeling. “I’m fine, Jack, thanks. Just a bit weak after being locked up in here for so long, and being on the bad-end of an explosion doesn’t really help.” The cuts on her face started to bleed, the red streaks making lines through the dust on her face. She gingerly touched her face, surprised to see her hands come back red. “Oh.”

“I have a med-kit on the ship. I’ll get you sorted out, no problem.” 

The Doctor thought back to her years of contemplation, and decided to try one of her theories out. “Jack, step back for a bit, would you?” 

“I know you’re upset at me for bringing too big a bomb, but we really should hurry, the guards will probably be here any minute…” 

“Jack, please. Just…I’m going to regenerate.”

Jack stopped his nervous fidgeting, and stared at the Doctor. “You’re WHAT? Did I kill you? Oh, Jesus, did I mess up that badly?”

“No, no, I’m not going to regenerate all the way. No new face. I quite like this one…even if I haven’t seen myself in a mirror for a long time. I’m just…I’m going to regenerate enough to heal up these scratches, and maybe reverse some of the damage sitting in a cell for this long did to my body.”

“But,” Jack looked at her, confused, “don’t you have a limited amount of regenerations or something?

The Doctor smiled a sad smile. “It’s a bit more complicated than that. I’ll fill you in later, pinky swear.”

“Well, I suppose a pinky swear will do. I’ll hold you to it.” Jack stepped back, knowing that getting too close to a regenerating Time Lord was no fun.

The Doctor’s hands started glowing, then her face, highlighting her crinkled forehead and drawn-in eyebrows. Slowly, her entire body gave off the golden glow that preceded a full regeneration. The prison cell lit up with the magical energy, and as Jack watched, the Doctor’s injuries started closing up. Her face started to fill in, replacing some of the gauntness and pallid complexion. Jack had thought she was beautiful before, but with health returned, well…

“Damn Doctor, you need a license to carry that face around!”

“Shush!” she replied through gritted teeth. “I’m…concen…trating.” 

Jack noticed she now stood more solidly in front of him. He assumed she’d repaired whatever muscle loss had happened while she was stuck here.

The healing glow surrounding the Doctor started to fade, and she looked at Jack. Her eyes looked surprised, but then a proud smile covered her face. “Last time I tried something like that, I had Handy to put the extra energy into! Pretty dang proud of myself for my control. Should’ve tried this earlier, I’ve felt awful. Oh! OH! I should’ve tried to change my hair color while I was at it—I could’ve been ginger!” The Doctor’s rambling was amusing, as always. 

“Listen, Doctor, I know you’re happy with yourself, and we can figure your hair out later—‘cause frankly, you could use a good hair washing from the look of it—“

“Oi!”

“Sorry! Anyway, we should get going if you’re feeling up to it. Are you up to it?”

She nodded in reply, giving Jack a wink. “Readier than ever!” 

Jack knew they were in a rush. Hell, he was the one that was trying to speed them up, but with that smile and wink, he was a goner. Grinning, he strode over to the Doctor, now much shorter than his skinny, suit-wearing Doctor, and gathered her up into a big bear hug. He felt the Doctor’s hands eventually rise up and pat him on the back, and then a quiet comment of: “I can’t breathe, Jack.” 

He released her, looking into the eyes—he never got used to even the eyes changing—of the Doctor, his Doctor. “Hello.”

“Hi, Jack. Good to see a friendly face.”

Jack smiled at her, knowing that they had decades, if not more, to catch up on later. But for now, they had one goal. “Okay, now we’re ready.” Releasing her, and turning towards the blown apart wall, he couldn’t help but add, “But you’ve really got to work on your hugging skills, Doctor”

She gave a breathy laugh in response. “Haven’t had much opportunity to practice! And my fam aren’t huggers. Or maybe I’m not a hugger. Still not really sure about that. Anyway, yes. Let’s go!” 

She grabbed Jack’s hand, carefully walking over the debris and out of the cell. She was quite pleased with how much healthier and stronger her legs felt. She mentally reprimanded herself for not keeping herself up better while stuck in the cell. If she had seemingly infinite regenerations, she might as well use ‘em.

Once in the hallway, the Doctor realized she didn’t know what the next step of the on-formation plan was. She didn’t even know the layout of the prison! Releasing Jack’s hand, she whipped back around to face him. “So, uh, what’s next? I’m not used to others making the plans. Can we just teleport back to your ship?” She paused, forehead crinkling again. “And for that matter, why didn’t you teleport into my cell in the first place?” 

“Oh, yeah, nitpick the escape plan of the man who got you out.”

“We’re not out yet…” she cheekily replied.

“Okay, okay. I couldn’t get into your cell. There’s some sort of teleport restriction on the cells. Only teleports originating from the prison work, apparently. But the hallways are fair game—“

His explanation was cut off by the shrill sound of sirens.

“Well, that took longer than expected” the Doctor mused. She supposed her wing of the prison didn’t get much foot traffic or attention since nothing ever changed, so it probably took a while for the guards to notice. The Doctor wasn’t going to complain about any delays that worked in their favor. 

Jack typed the coordinates for his ship into his vortex manipulator and grabbed the Doctor’s hand again. “Need any sonic help?” The Doctor replied, a hint of worry seeping into her voice. 

“No, no, it’s all good. Let’s roll!” He hit the teleport button, and…

Nothing. 

He pressed it again, stronger this time.

Nothing.

The two prison escapees looked at each other, panic building. 

“Well, this is awkward” came Jack’s blunt response.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all like this little fic so far! I hopefully got Jack and the Doctor in character, but any constructive criticism is appreciated. 
> 
> Just writing this story to take my mind off things, and to help process this crazy last season of DW, haha. 
> 
> Next chapter will be a bit heavier, I think, but I'm trying to keep things relatively light. 'Cause we all need a little joy right now, no? :) 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	3. Lots of Running

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kind of a "filler" chapter, if you will, because I couldn't just have them magically escape, haha.

The Doctor and Jack found themselves running through the barren, unmarked corridors, trying to find some place to hide. It wasn’t easy when there were no doors in sight. Figuring there must be stairs somewhere in case the teleports malfunctioned, the two kept up their search. Jack couldn’t help but let out a laugh at the absurdity of their situation and how at home he felt running next to the Doctor. Glancing over at her, he noticed that the Doctor’s face had lit up from the adrenaline of their escape; clearly, she was enjoying this madness as much as Jack.

Finally, after several tense minutes of running, they found the locked stairwell. The door was almost undetectable and unmarked, but a quick scan with the sonic revealed its purpose and unlocked it. The Doctor shoved Jack inside and she followed closely behind. Leaning back against the door, the two caught their breaths.

Panting, the Doctor looked over at Jack. “So much for a rescue!” she accused him. 

Waving his arms about, Jack tried to place the blame on the teleport systems blocking his vortex manipulator. The Doctor’s unamused stare didn’t help him feel less embarrassed. “Look, I didn’t expect this little hiccup, but we’ll figure it out. We always do!” He raised his eyebrows, almost challenging the Doctor to disagree.

Shaking her head, the Doctor couldn’t deny that they’d gotten out of worse situations with less. At least she had her sonic, and a somewhat useful vortex manipulator. And, she supposed, Jack might be useful as well. 

“Do you have more explosives or anything else up your sleeve? All I’ve got left is my sonic.”

Jack patted his pockets. “No, sorry, I just brought the one. Didn’t think I’d need anything else.”

The Doctor looked around the stairwell, trying to block out the alarm sounds that were still echoing around them. She’d thought of escape plans during her years trapped in the cell, but without much success as she didn’t know anything about the jail besides the strange rocks. But wait! Jack might have information!

“Jack!” she exclaimed. 

Jumping a bit at the sudden shout, Jack looked at her with a questioning look, “What? What did you think of?”

“Jack! Do you know where we are?”

An eyebrow rose as he replied, “Uh, prison?”

“No, don’t be stupid!” She grabbed his coat lapels— _how did he still have this coat, anyway_ , she thought—and asked again: “Jack, where are we? Which prison? Do you have any information about the schematics or the layout? You must, since you found my cell!”

“Yeah, of course! I mean, there wasn’t a lot of info. Otherwise, you know, we wouldn’t have had to search so much for these damn stairs—“

She shook him by his coat again. “Jack! Info, now!”

“Right, right. We’re in the maximum security prison called Stormcage. Only the worst of the worst get put here. Still not totally sure how you ended up here, but you’re always full of surprised, eh Doctor?” 

A strange look flashed across her face after him mentioning the prison’s name. Stormcage. The Stormcage? She should have figured, where else would they stick The Oncoming Storm other than Stormcage? The Doctor laughed under her breath at her pun.

“What’s so funny?” Jack asked, cocking his head to the side.

“Nothing. It’s just…I know this prison. In fact, if fate would have it and our timelines lined up by some miracle again, I know someone else in here” the Doctor replied, smirking.

Jack, noticing the smirk, pushed for more information. “And should we be trying to break this other someone out as well?” 

The Doctor let out a short laugh. “Oh, no, no, no. She’ll be fine. She never stays in here too long. Though I am a bit offended she didn’t notice I’ve been stuck in here so long. But then again, I don’t know what year it is, so she may not even be here.” The Doctor paused for a bit. 15 different plans started swirling around her brains as she tried to put the pieces together. 

“You know what, let me check. We might not need to break her out—changing timelines and all—but maybe she can help us, if she’s here!” 

At that, the Doctor whipped out the sonic again, pointing it in all directions, scanning for River’s signature. After a few seconds, she brought the sonic to her face, analyzing the readings. A smile slowly spread across her face, but Jack noticed that it didn’t reach her eyes. The Doctor was hiding something, he just wasn’t sure what. 

“Doctor? So? Is this mystery woman here?” 

“Yep. Well, sort of. I’m getting traces, so she was at least here recently. She comes and goes.”  
“Comes and goes out of a prison? What, is she a guard?” 

Laughing, the Doctor simply replied with a shake of her head. 

“I thought our timelines were done crossing, but looks like we could get one more meeting. That might be the one good thing to come out of being trapped here.” 

Jack crossed his arms, giving the Doctor a look.

She picked up his unspoken complaint. “And seeing you again, of course! Thanks again for coming, Jack, even if it is a messy rescue.”

“Hey!” 

She shrugged, then took Jack’s hand and led him down the stairs, hoping that they were’t being followed quite yet. Apparently they were on the 13th level of the prison. However, she supposed that being on an asteroid of sorts kind of messed up the leveling system. Anyway. They ran down two flights of stairs and exited on the 11th floor. Jack and the Doctor heard heavy footsteps in the stairwell, so they shut the door quickly. 

Glancing around to get her bearings, the Doctor had another wave of memory hit her. This floor of the prison had cells with bars and doors on one side of the hallway. She remembered her first kiss with River in the doorway of one of them. Mentally shaking herself free of the memory, the Doctor refocused on the task at hand: escaping the guards. From the loudness of the footsteps, it sounded like the Judoon were following them as opposed to the occasional humanoid guards she’d encountered on previous visits. 

Having figured out where they were, the Doctor knew her way to River’s cell. Jack looked at her quizzically, an unasked question in his eyes.

“Right, well, I’ve been here a few times,” the Doctor paused to catch her breath, “The last time I was in this prison was centuries ago; picked her up to go on a date—“

Jack stopped dead in his tracks. Since the two were still holding hands, the Doctor was yanked backwards and had to regain her balance. 

“Ow! What was that for? What, are the guards close?” 

Jack raised his eyebrows, his curiosity getting the better of him. “A date, Doctor?”

She didn’t like his incredulous tone. Regardless, her face grew a little flushed. “Um, right. Should clarify, I suppose. River, that’s her name. She’s a time traveler as well—in fact, she has a vortex manipulator just like yours. I sure hope it isn’t yours, that would make things weird, wouldn’t it?”

“You’re getting off topic, Doctor. Give me the juicy details! How’d you end up dating a criminal?” 

The Doctor took a deep breath, and just as she was about to explain, she noticed two guards teleport close behind them. Jack noticed as well, and the running began again. 

Luckily for them, Judoon were not fast. However, less lucky: they had guns. 

Rounding a corner, The Doctor pointed her sonic at what she assumed were the security cameras. She continued to do this to each one she saw as they continued along the rounded corridor. She hoped that she was successful in turning them all off.

Next to her, Jack breathlessly commented, “You do realize they can…they have a teleport…they can…they can catch up with us.”

The Doctor nodded in frustrated agreement, “Yes, thank you, I know!”

Continuing to run, now accompanied by the occasional shout from the guards or a laser flying by them, the Doctor was thankful for the curved hallways. Picking up their speed, the Doctor was extra grateful that she’d taken the time to heal herself. Doing all this running after sitting around for so long would have been a right mess. Continuing to sonic the cameras, the Doctor noticed that they were already off. But that meant…not only was the hallway curved, it was a circle! They’d come full circle. And seeing as though Jack and her were much faster than the guards…

The Doctor and Jack abruptly stopped as they realized they’d circled the Judoon. They could see the guards awkwardly running ahead of them. She reflected how lucky it was that Judoon weren’t very clever and hadn’t thought of splitting up and going opposite ways in the hallway. The Doctor sonic-ed the last camera, silently making a note to add a silent function on the device, and turned back to Jack. Whispering, she told him to follow her over to a cell. Once more, the Doctor used her sonic to unlock the cell, quickly ushering Jack inside. She locked the door from the inside and quietly shoved Jack towards the bed in the corner of the cell. 

Jack gave her a flirtatious look. She gave him a furious one in return. He understood. The two of them dove under the bed, the Doctor just managing to tug the thin sheet down to cover the end of the bed right before the Judoon rounded the corner. Again, lacking a certain level of cleverness, the guards didn’t even pause to check the cells; then again, not a lot of people would think that a pair of jail breakers would break back into a cell to hide. 

Laying dead still and as quietly as possible, the exhausted pair waited until they heard the footsteps stop and the shouts end. Finally relaxing, the Doctor started quietly laughing at the absurdity of their situation. Jack soon followed suit, apologizing for the rescue resulting in the Doctor just being in a different cell than before. 

After a few seconds of breathless laughter, Jack brought his attention back to the Doctor, turning as much as he could being stuck under a bed.

“So then, Doctor, tell me about this _date_ you mentioned.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please excuse any absurdity in their escape, I didn't want to focus too much on the "how," haha. As always, I'd love to hear what you all think! Hope you liked this chapter. :) Y'all can have a lil' River, as a treat.


	4. The Fam

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shifting perspectives for a bit, we can see what the fam's been up to since the Doctor "died."

They had held out hope for as long as they could. But after six months of waiting, keeping eyes peeled and ears open for any signs of the TARDIS returning, the Doctor’s fam finally acknowledged that the Doctor wasn’t coming back. She must have been successful with the Death Particle on her home planet, and that was that. No more Doctor. Graham, Yaz, and Ryan all rejected the idea of the Doctor being dead as much as they could, but if she’d made it out alive, she’d have come back for them. Now it had been a year, and the fam had moved on. Or, tried to return to normal life, whatever that meant now.

At first, Ryan struggled to figure out what was next for him after returning to Sheffield. He felt lost, but with the help of his friends and the support of Graham and Yaz, Ryan decided to apply university. They had a big celebration to celebrate Ryan getting into the engineering program in the local university. Clearly his experiences traveling with the Doctor helped him realize that he could accomplish much more than he gave himself credit for. Even though losing the Doctor was hard on him, Ryan had considered stopping traveling with the Doctor before everything happened on Gallifrey, so he’d been slightly more prepared emotionally. But, the reality was a bit tougher than the plan as he didn’t expect their parting to be so abrupt, and so…final. However, Ryan had his friends and lost himself in his studies, so “normal” life wasn’t so bad. Ryan also checked in with Yaz often, worrying about her since she didn’t handle going back to “normal” life quite so well. 

Yaz was the most affected of the three. The Doctor had clearly been Yaz’s role model; she looked up to the time-traveling, mysterious woman so much, even starting to pick up some of her reckless heroic impulses. So having to deal with her loss and return to work as if nothing happened was a harsh reality check. At first, Yaz just couldn’t readjust. Graham suspected she didn’t want to, either. She held onto the hope of the Doctor being alive the longest. Graham also guessed that there were some deeper feelings at play, but neither of them spoke about it, and Graham didn’t want to push her. But after the first six months passed, Yaz, too, resigned that they would never again see the incredible woman who saved them all. 

MI6 seemed to have put in a good word for Yaz at the police station. She’d spent her first few months after returning to Earth staying at home trying to cope with the loss of the Doctor. This was not-so-mysteriously forgiven by her higher-ups (the station was full of gossips), so now she was back on the force. Since returning to police duty, Yaz had moved up from parking enforcement. But even patrolling the streets was a far throw from the world- and universe-saving she’d helped with when traveling with the Doctor. Readjusting to local, low-stakes criminal activity was just…boring. She often complained to Ryan and Graham about her work and the lack of excitement, but with some urging from the others, she tried to focus on the fact that she was still helping people. Even if the crimes were incomparable to what they’d seen outside of Earth. 

  
For Graham, he’d dealt with the loss of Grace recently enough, so losing the Doctor wasn’t as much of a shock to him as it was to Ryan and Yaz. But it still hurt daily. Two absolutely incredible women in his life leaving so abruptly left Graham feeling slightly helpless and alone. But Yaz and Ryan kept him tethered, and being able to share stories helped all of them deal with the complex emotions swirling around them. Usually they met at his place, eating some chips or just drinking some tea. 

Graham noticed that when he saw something interesting he kept asking questions aloud, expecting an enthusiastic, long-winded answer from the Doctor. But he found himself talking to empty air each time. 

After the first few months passed and routines started being reestablished, Graham realized he now had what people called the “travel bug.” Consequently, he decided to travel to some of the places on his bucket list, starting with the places he and Grace had planned to go. So far he’d only gone down to Australia and New Zealand, but just last week he planned a trip to Japan for next month. Ryan and Yaz were supportive of Graham’s adventuring and he knew they would be fine alone. They’d handled enough while with the Doctor, so Graham trusted his grandson and Yaz to be fine without him during his trips. And, Graham realized, he was doing all right being alone as well nowadays. Well, as okay as one could be.

Part of Graham’s readjustment to daily life was an effort to reconnect with old friends. That’s how in March of 2021, Graham found himself in London meeting up with a few of his friend he’d met in chemo. They usually met once a year, but he’d missed the last few get-togethers since he was off on some alien planet with the Doctor. He wasn’t sure which planets because time was hard to keep track of in a time-machine…

His mates were a great support system. Graham told them over coffee and biscuits about Grace, about losing the Doctor, about his relationship getting better with his grandson, and about Yaz being the granddaughter he’d never had. Of course, he left out the alien, time and space traveling bits, judging that his friends would think he’d finally lost it. But the sympathy he got for his loses, and the joy for his more positive news, were helpful reminders that he wasn’t alone and that things would get better. 

Feeling a bit lighter after the meeting, Graham found himself wandering around downtown London. He didn’t travel south often, so he figured he’d check out some of the shops, maybe pick something up for Ryan and Yaz, both of whom were back home resting while Graham was out of town.

Looking into each shop window he passed, Graham noted that the way he walked around places now had changed after the Doctor literally fell into his life. He always looked around now, observing people more and noticing small details, and (he had to admit) keeping an eye out for signs of aliens. Knowing that they could be anywhere was deeply disturbing, but also reminded him of his positive memories with the Doctor. They really had some great times…

Deciding to walk a little longer to clear his head, Graham noticed a nice looking coffee shop several meters ahead. He assumed it was popular from the looks of things. The outside seating was packed with couples, groups of friends, and single people like himself sipping espressos and tea under the afternoon sun. Feeling his stomach rumble a bit, Graham realized he hadn’t eaten since the morning, and his meeting with friends had gone long, with only a few biscuits shared between the group. Shrugging his shoulders, he decided to put off gift-shopping until he filled his stomach back up. No one would blame him, right? And hopefully no ghosts would be serving him this time…

Finding his thoughts drifting back to his time with the Doctor again, Graham shook the thoughts out of his head and re-focused on the task at hand: tea and snacks. Heading toward the quaint cafe, he scanned the crowd again as a force of habit. Only this time, he found himself doing a double-take. No, it couldn’t be.

He rubbed his eyes. Looked again.

It was. 

Captain Jack Harkness was sitting at the cafe. 

Graham recognized him easily. The old military-style coat gave him away. Also, having been kissed by the man ensured that his face was seared into Graham’s memory. 

Jack was gesticulating wildly, clearly telling some kind of story. A funny one, by judge of his huge grin. Graham walked closer, taking in the person sitting across from Jack, their face hidden by the angle from which Graham was looking. Long, braided blonde hair spilled down her back, and Graham assumed the mystery woman must be on a date with Jack, flirt that he was. Something about her seemed familiar, though.

Graham paused for a while, watching Jack, unsure how to proceed. Jack’s story clearly came to an end as he shifted his focus to the woman across from him, his smile slowly fading. Graham thought that was an abrupt mood change. Suddenly, Jack shot up, slamming his hands on the table. Graham jumped a bit at the abrupt movement. Tea spilled everywhere on the cafe table. The other patrons looked at Jack, deeply concerned by his outburst, judging him for disrupting their peaceful tea break. Graham could hear him shout from where he stood watching.

“WHAT? THE MASTER? THAT ASSHOLE?”

His friend across the table quickly gestured for him to sit down, clearly noticing how his loud outburst was disturbing the general public. Graham cocked his head, trying to think of who else knew about the Master. Probably a lot, going off of how many secrets the Doc kept from them…but still, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he knew Jack’s mate. Drawing up the courage, or perhaps just bracing himself for another surprise kiss, Graham finally walked closer to Jack’s table. He wasn’t sure what he wanted out of talking with Jack. Maybe he just wanted someone else to talk to about the Doc; sure, his mates from earlier in the day were sympathetic, but they didn’t know his situation in full. Jack would. Or at least he wouldn’t call Graham crazy for talking about traveling in space and time. But deeper down, Graham also wanted confirmation about the fate of the Doctor. Maybe Jack would know something…

Jack was sitting again, wiping up the spilled tea, glancing up at his friend with what looked like anger burning in his eyes. Approaching Jack, Graham cleared his throat to get his attention. He felt a little awkward interrupting what seemed like an intense conversation, but Graham figured he could at least give some more info on the Master if that could help, or just figure out why on earth they were shouting about that horrible man over tea.   
At the sound of Graham’s cough, Jack looked up, his eyes quickly shifting from anger to recognition to surprise. He jumped up again, spilling even more tea. 

“Graham! Wow! Long time no see, Silver Fox! Here for another kiss?” he winked at Graham, who rolled his eyes in response. 

“Jack, don’t.”

Looking back at his partner, Jack shrugged, as if to say _What? I didn’t do anything_.

But Graham wasn’t focused on what was said between the two because in that moment he finally took in who was sitting with Jack. 

It was the Doctor. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone reading and leaving comments/kudos! I get such a warm feeling every I get a notification~ I never thought this random plot I had rolling around in my head would be enjoyed by others. Haha! I'll try to keep the updates coming. No idea how long the story will go, but I hope you'll stick with it along with me! :) Next chapter will go back to more heavy stuff. Timey-wimey, as the Doc would say. ;)
> 
> As always, any feedback is appreciated. I hope everyone is staying safe and well in this crazy time. <3


	5. Brokenhearted Fools

The question hung in the air: “So then, Doctor, tell me about this date you mentioned,”

Shifting in discomfort, the Doctor quickly thought about her options: brush over the question, make up a story, or be honest. She supposed she had made the promise to herself to be more honest with her friends, so…

“Well, it’s a long story, one that is way too complicated to explain quickly, especially since, you know, we’re trying to be quiet and break out of a prison at the moment!” the Doctor whispered, her speech a little faster than normal. 

Jack gave her a deadpan look.

“Oh, all right! Let’s get out from under here first, at least” she said as she started shuffling out from under the bed. Jack followed after. They took in the cell they were hiding in. There was a bed, a tiny window, and the metal bars facing the hallway. Jack noticed the security camera on the ceiling across from the cell. He pointed them out to the Doctor.

“Won’t they turn them back on?”

“Oh! Clever Jack! Ten more points for you!” The Doctor proceeded to point her sonic at the camera again, and slowly it began to move so it wasn’t facing their cell anymore. Smiling at her sonic in gratitude for it still working after all this time, she simultaneously hoped the guards wouldn’t notice the shift in camera perspective once they were turned on again. 

Glancing back at Jack, she resigned herself to the complicated story she was about to share. “All right, now that that’s all sorted, I’ll answer your questions. River’s supposed to be on this level of the prison, but all the cells we ran past were empty. Guess she’s out for now, so we have time to kill anyway.” Taking another deep breath, she began her story.

“River’s my wife. We got married a long time ago. I’ve regenerated twice since then! Actually, we had a few wedding ceremonies—I think River just wanted an excuse to plan more honeymoons—but yeah, she’s my wife, and she’s a bit of a…”

“Criminal?” Jack suggested.

“Psychopath” the Doctor replied, nonchalant. 

“Didn’t think that was your type,” Jack responded, his eyes sparkling at all this gossip, “and I didn’t expect you to be the marrying type, either. Wish I’d known, I’d have popped the question a long time ago!”

The Doctor couldn’t help but laugh at that. A real, genuine, eye-crinkling laugh. It had been a long time since she’d felt this light. “You flatter me, Jack, but no. River was a…special case.”

Jack tried to decipher what the Doctor meant, his eyebrows scrunching together. “Special as in you didn’t want to marry her? Were you forced? Was she dying? Were you _dared_?” He smirked at this last idea.

The Doctor put up her hands to stop the barrage of questions. “Actually, I was the one dying. Or rather, the universe was dying because I wasn’t and—“ her eyes widened as she realized Jack was totally lost. “Anyway, long story short, I married her to save the universe. But I did love her. Still do, really.”

“I’m sensing a ‘but’ at the end of that sentence. And not the fun kind of butt, the sad one.”

She smiled again. Jack never did miss an opportunity to make an innuendo. “Caught me.” She flinched at her involuntary use of the Master’s words. “Yes, I love her, but she’s gone. She died the first time I met her. Donna was with me at the time. Long time ago, that was.” The Doctor paused again, thinking back to Donna and their tragic parting as well. Why couldn’t the Doctor just have a nice, peaceful goodbye with her friends? Was that really too much to ask? At least Martha got out relatively unscathed…

The Doctor was distracting herself again. After all this time, the thought of River’s passing was still too fresh a wound to face head-on. 

“So, yeah. River’s gone, but not really. We kept meeting in the wrong order. Pretty sure we aren’t meant to meet again, but as you know, time is just…a messy, crazy, unpredictable thing.”

Jack’s previously jovial expression fell a bit after hearing after the Doctor’s complicated love life. 

“Um, did I say something wrong? I thought you’d love to hear that even I have relationship issues! I mean, you knew about Rose, of course, but…”

“I lost someone, too.” Jack stared at the floor, all hints of his smile gone. “He was also special. I’d loved and lost before—I’ve had a long life, too—but Ianto was different.” He looked up, making eye contact with the Doctor. “Actually, you met him. Sort of. That group chat we had when Davros stole the Earth.” Jack continued after seeing the Doctor nod. “He worked at Torchwood with me. We saved the world a couple times together, and he loved me for who I was, faults and all. But I lost him.” 

The Doctor noticed Jack wasn’t looking at her after sharing his story, and she chalked it down to simple sadness. But Jack’s next sentence snapped her back to reality.

“We needed you, and you weren’t there” he said quietly. Then, louder, “Where were you? The world went to hell, and we—I—needed you!” Tears welled in Jack’s eyes in a moment of rare vulnerability. The Doctor stood still, shocked into silence. Great, right when she had the chance to talk with someone she goes and clams up! She looked at Jack, a question in her eyes: What happened?

“There were these aliens…we called them the 456. They…they wanted our children. It was awful. Makes me sick thinking back. Ianto died next to me when we confronted the aliens.” He wiped the tears out of his eyes. Shaking his head, he continued. 

“I hated you so much. So, so much. You always swooped in at the last minute to help when the planet was in danger, and I just thought, you know, you’d keep an eye on me, too. That you’d help if we, if I, needed you. But that was a naive belief, I suppose.” 

The Doctor could hear hints of anger still lingering in his words, but mostly Jack just sounded dejected. That was new.

She looked down, thinking about her mysterious past again and how many people she’d probably hurt or failed to save. Shaking her head clear again, the Doctor glanced back up at Jack. 

“There are a lot of planets, Jack. You know that. I can’t always be there when Earth needs me. I try…” she was surprised by the lump forming in her throat breaking up her speech, “I try my best, Jack, to save as many people as I can. It doesn’t always work. Sometimes I don’t get there in time, sometimes I’m busy saving someone else, and sometimes I just…” She wasn’t quite sure what she wanted to say next, but clearly Jack still wasn’t appeased. 

“Jack, not all planets have a Torchwood with an immortal man with a strong sense of justice at its head. I wouldn’t be so willing to leave Earth if I didn’t know it was in good hands.” Peaking over at Jack, she could tell by the relaxing of his shoulders that he understood. Their eyes met. Perhaps Jack was not yet forgiving, but she could tell the tension that had steadily grown between them had eased a bit. 

Jack didn’t look at her for long, glancing back down at his vortex manipulator situated on his wrist. Quietly, he admitted “I know. Logically, I know why you didn’t come. But emotionally? I’m still hurt. Losing Ianto and the others on my team was just…a lot to deal with. I could have used a friend, a friend who understood loss like that.” At this, he looked up into the Doctor’s eyes.

“I needed my Doctor.” Silently, Jack seemed to get sucked back into his memories. The Doctor empathized. She’d been in the same state for the past 10-odd years.

“I’m…I’m sorry, Jack” she said as tenderly as she could. The Doctor reached out to hug him. Or pat his shoulder. Or rub his back? She honestly didn’t really know what to do with her hands, so when Jack noticed her hovering hands reaching out to him, he seemed shocked out of his reverie. 

“Uh, Doctor, are you going to try and strangle me?” 

“What? No! I just, I’m just…awkward. I’m sorry, Jack. This regeneration of mine is quite socially awkward. I don’t know how to, um… Do you want a hug?” She shrugged as she tried to explain this new trait of hers. Was it really new, though? She’d always been a bit off with interpersonal skills. 

Jack gaped at her, and finally broke a smile again. “Look at us two heartbroken idiots, stuck in a jail in the middle of space.”

“Not the middle, more like slightly to the right.”

“Oh, shut up!” Jack said affectionately as he wrapped his arms around the Doctor. They both seemed to draw strength from one another. The Doctor smiled into his shoulder, realizing she’d missed hugs more than she thought.

She felt Jack’s silent laughter. “What?”

Jack let out a laugh. “You’re so small now! I could just…” 

Jack picked her up and swung the Doctor around, reveling in the new ability. _I could have done this to his pinstripe suit-wearing Doctor too, twig that he was, but this is even better,_ Jack reflected.

“Put me down, Jack! This isn’t funny!” The Doctor waved her arms about, trying to wiggle out of the hug.

“Oh, I beg to differ. This is a dream come true!” He kept spinning around until he got too dizzy. Placing the now grumpy Doctor back on her feet, he smiled brightly at her, and was met, albeit begrudgingly, with one in return.

Jack couldn’t help but notice, after the hug, how frail the Doctor was under her prison-issued clothes. The gray overalls drooped over her small frame, and Jack paused to really look at her. Her blonde hair hung limply down her back, frizzy and unkempt. Her face was gaunt, and she looked unstable on her feet; he was sure it wasn’t just because of the spinning. Sure, the regeneration energy she used helped a bit, but she still looked worse for wear. She was smiling, but there was pain behind her eyes. Jack could read her easily because he hid his pain in the same manner, through smiles and laughter. He’d have to question the Doctor later about what else happened to warrant such a haunted look in her eyes. 

The two time travelers felt better after getting caught up, at least the basics, but both knew there were plenty more stories to be shared. The Doctor wanted to know more about how Jack was involved with the Alliance and how he ended up finding her; Jack wanted to know what had affected the Doctor so intensely because he knew it went beyond being locked up for years. They knew each other well enough to recognize when the other was hiding something, even when the Doctor changed faces. They also both knew that they could never stay mad at each other, and with that knowledge, the old friends dug back into planning their escape. 

That is, until they heard the unmistakable sound of a TARDIS materializing outside their cell. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I sound like a broken record, but thank you again to all who read and commented! I'm definitely using this story as a way to distract myself from all the madness swirling around us, and to procrastinate on my final papers. Ha! 
> 
> This chapter was a bit heavy, but I'm planning on it being light and fun from here on. Well, mostly...
> 
> Hope everyone is doing well!


	6. The Flirts

“Well, this is either really lucky, or really unlucky” the Doctor muttered over the sound of the TARDIS fully materializing. 

Jack looked at her, then at the TARDIS, then back to her, clearly confused. “Did I just go through planning this ridiculous escape when you could have just called the TARDIS the whole time?” 

The Doctor shook her head no, gesturing for him to be quiet and move out of sight. She supposed that they had hid in a cell near River’s, and this was her past self dropping her off. A few tense seconds later, that theory was confirmed. Her bowtie-wearing younger self sauntered out of the ship, followed closely by River. The two were dressed up nicely, River wearing a floor-length dark blue gown, the past Doctor in his nice dress coat and a matching bowtie, of course. Despite the ridiculousness of his accessory, the Doctor reflected that she missed her eccentric outfit. 

_When I get out of here, I’m going to get a brilliant new look right away_ , she promised herself. 

Remembering that Jack was next to her, she whispered a quick explanation. “That’s me. Well, a past me. The one in the bowtie. And River, the one with the space-hair.” 

Jack’s eyes widened. “Two of you again? I like where this is going…” he whispered past his growing grin. 

Rolling her eyes, the Doctor hit his arm to reprimand him for his flirtations and to remind him that they needed to stay quiet. She quickly ran through some scenarios in her mind:

_Jack and I could sneak out and steal the TARDIS while past-me says goodbye to River, then send it back after I get my TARDIS. No, that would be no good. He’d see the TARDIS disappear, and plus I don’t remember that happening…I should really stop interfering in my own timeline. Then again, who knows how many times I’ve run across a past version of myself without realizing it…I should really try and figure out how to get some of those memories back…wait, focus Doctor. Prison break. Right. Maybe I’ll just ignore the TARDIS, wait for past-me to leave, then ask River to help. That could work. Though it is tempting to just ask past-me for a lift. But he’d figure out who I am, plus Jack is here…hmm. Yeah, best to wait._

These thoughts took the Doctor about .3 seconds to formulate. She turned back to Jack, whispering her conclusion to him. He nodded in agreement, though his amusement at her past regeneration was clear. She’d have to explain the bowtie, wouldn’t she? And, oh dear, yep, there it was. River and past-her were kissing. Jack’s eyes widened further, a feat that honestly impressed the Doctor. She shrugged in response. He knew River was her wife, but he’d never seen the Doctor kiss anyone. 

_Been a while since I’ve hugged or kissed anyone_ , she reflected, forehead crinkling at the frankly saddening thought. She dispelled the train of thought for fear of her telling Jack this realization. She knew he’d jump at the chance to snog her. 

The hidden pair watched past-Doctor wave goodbye to River, and disappear in his TARDIS. It was difficult to watch such a convenient source of transportation leave, but the risks outweighed the benefits. Plus, she didn’t want Jack being around her flirty past self, it would be tough enough introducing to River… _Oh goodness, what am I doing? The two biggest flirts meeting. This isn’t going to go well._

Jack moved first, crossing his arms over his chest. 

“What?” the Doctor asked defensively.

“Explain.”

“ _What_? That we didn’t steal my old TARDIS? Or why we didn’t ask for a ride?”

“No, that’s obvious. Explain the bowtie” he said, a laugh hiding in his words. 

Rolling her eyes, the Doctor simply replied that she’s always had a unique fashion sense. “Just wait until I choose my new clothes. Can’t wait to get out of these prison clothes. But first, let’s get out of here, yeah?”

Jack gestured to the cell door, inviting the Doctor to unlock it. The two escapees looked down the hallway before exiting, then walked over to River’s cell. The curly-haired, psychopathic archeologist was sitting on her bed, writing in her TARDIS journal. 

Without looking up, River said, “Yes, yes, I’m back in my cell. Won’t leave again, pinky swear. Go tell your boss or whatever that I’m back and I won’t cause any problems…again.”

The Doctor realized River thought they were guards checking on her. River did escape pretty often, and it was usually the Doctor’s fault. A smile slowly spread on her face as she cleared her throat. 

“Hello, sweetie.”

The reaction was immediate. River looked up and, seeing the Doctor, leapt to her feet. 

“Well I must say, this is quite a special day, isn’t it? Two visits, and one from a new face? I must have been a very good girl,” River said, grinning from ear-to-ear. She walked over to the cell door, which the Doctor quickly unlocked with her sonic. 

“Oh, new sonic, new Doctor…very nice. Must say, quite an upgrade.”

“That’s what I keep saying! I quite enjoy this new face.”

“I think I’ll enjoy it, too,” River replied, winking. 

The Doctor blushed at this, unused to being flirted with, let alone by River and Jack within an hour. 

River looked over the Doctor, taking all her changes in. While she did so, the Doctor reflected on how odd it was to see her wife again. A flood of emotions the Doctor didn’t realize she’d been repressing started bleeding out. Her eyes smarted, threatening to unleash full-blown tears. Blinking rapidly, she decided to stay positive in front of her wife; River could read her like an open book, even in this new regeneration, she was sure. It would be of no help to break down now and sidetrack their escape. The Doctor would settle with just being lucky enough to see her wife one more time. 

“Sweetie, why are you wearing that hideous jail uniform?” The question snapped the Doctor out of her reverie. 

“Uh…long story.” She shrugged. “Spoilers?” It was odd using that expression in this new regeneration.

Laughing, River grabbed her face, giving the Doctor a deep kiss. The sensation was a shock to the Doctor’s system, not just because she’d been in solitary confinement for 10-odd years, but because it was her first kiss in this body. She…didn’t mind it, actually. But her awkwardness didn’t work to her advantage as her arms and hands didn’t know what to do, so she just let them dangle at her sides. River broke the kiss, eyes sparkling, reveling in the fact that she still had the ability to make the Doctor a nervous mess. 

“Been a while, sweetie?”

“You’ve, uh, you’ve no idea,” the Doctor said, her voice catching. Again, remembering that Jack was with her, she gestured to her friend. “River, I believe I’ve told you about Captain Jack. Jack, River. River, Jack.” The introductions finished, the two new acquaintances shook hands.

“River, the Doctor tells me you married her. Well done! Didn’t think she’d ever settle down with anyone. You must be quite the woman.”

“Settle down may be a bit of a stretch, but I won’t deny I’m pretty incredible.”

“Oh, confident, I like that.”

“Jack, stop it,” the Doctor warned, annoyed that her prediction of the two flirts meeting was coming true. 

“Oh, relax sweetie,” River replied. “So, tell me, really, why are you in Stormcage? And in a prison uniform at that? Is this some kind of role-play? Because if it is, I’m in.”

“I like her _a lot_ ,” Jack said, playfully punching the Doctor’s shoulder. She rolled her eyes as far back as possible. 

“Can we focus, please? I uh, got locked up. Still not sure why. But, we don’t have a way out…probably something my past-self did. Also a long story. And Jack’s vortex manipulator isn’t working. Figured you’d have tips on how to get out of here, since you escape so often, even without a lift from me.”

River smirked, reflecting on all the great escapes she’d had. “Oh, yes, I’m a pro. Of course I can help! Do you need to get back to your TARDIS? I can probably lock on to the coordinates, but no promises.” 

The Doctor thought for a bit, and went back through some of the plans she’d come up with during her confinement. “No, I think I need to get back to my fam first. I sent them home with a different TARDIS. I can use that to get to mine, and then leave the other somewhere safe. I have another one by my TARDIS…TARDIS party, ha!” 

River and Jack looked at each other, then her, confused.

She paused. “What?” Another pause. “Oh! The multiple TARDISes, right. Well, uh, they’re, um…spoilers?” she grimaced at her repeated excuse for not sharing more information. Luckily, River knew not to pry, but the Doctor came to terms with having to explain the situation to Jack later. 

“Anyway, I need to get back to Sheffield. I think I sent my fam there in early 2020. Don’t remember the date I set exactly, but I think aiming for about May of 2020 will be good. Don’t want to get there before them! That would be awkward!”

“Fam?” River asked, amused.

“Yeah! I have a fam now! Fams are cool.” The Doctor winked at River, the shared joke going over Jack’s head. “Anyway, could you help us, River?”

“Yes, of course, sweetie. Come in, have a seat on the bed. Captain, can I see your vortex manipulator?” 

Jack unclasped his wristband, handing it over to River. He and the Doctor entered the cell, sitting on River’s small bed. “First we were under a bed, now we’re sitting on one, can’t wait to see what’s next, Doctor!”

“Stop it,” the Doctor chided. River let out a laugh, enjoying her husb—no, her wife’s discomfort with the flirting. _Never gets old_ , she thought. 

“So you married the bowtie-wearing Doctor, then?” Jack asked River, unable to contain his curiosity. 

River grinned again. “Oh, yes, my awkward, bowtie Doctor. Yep, he’s mine. But I’ve met some other versions of him, too. I’m sure I’ll meet more in my future. I’m sure she’s explained that we don’t meet in a linear fashion.” 

“Yep, I’ve heard. And how is that regeneration? Besides the questionable fashion sense?”

“Oi, I’m right here!” the Doctor exclaimed. 

Ignoring the Doctor’s complaint, she continued. “He’s cute. Very energetic, loyal to a fault, and a big ol’ flirt, just not a good one.”

“Oh man, I wish I’d met him. Or, will I? Doctor, will I meet that version of you?”

“Nope. Sorry, Jack. This is the first time I’ve seen you since I introduced you to Alonso in that bar.”

“Ah, wow. So it’s been a while for you, too, then” Jack replied, his voice softening with the memory of the bad state he’d been in when he was sitting in that bar, processing all that had happened. Alonso had helped heal some of his emotional scarring, but not all. Never all. 

The Doctor was quiet for a moment, too. “Yeah, it’s been…a long time. I regenerated twice before this face. Worth the wait, though!” 

“Twice?” River piped up. “I thought you had a maximum number of regenerations…”

“Ah, well, something, er, happened…”

“Let me guess, spoilers again?”

“Aren’t there always?”

River chuckled. “Oh yes, always.” She turned back to the vortex manipulator, fiddling with the buttons some more. “Doctor, can I use your sonic?”

The Doctor handed over her sonic, happy that River seemed to like the new design. “Made it myself, this time around!” River nodded in appreciation.

“All right, I think I’ve fixed it up. Want to take a look, sweetie?” She handed the vortex manipulator and sonic back to the Doctor, who examined her wife’s work. 

“Oh, that’s brilliant!” she said, both impressed and excited. “This should get around the security just fine.”

“I should hope! It’s not my first rodeo, as they say!” River said, proud of her success. She paused, looking back at the Doctor. She really took her in this time, noticing details she’d missed before.

Yes, this regeneration was gorgeous. But below her beauty, the Doctor looked had a haunted look. Not just the typical tiredness from a long day saving the universe, but deeper. River could see the sadness and exhaustion behind the smile that the Doctor had plastered on her face.   
“Sweetie?” River asked, softly.

Noticing her change in tone, the Doctor looked at her, worried. “Yes, River?”

“How…how long were you in here?” 

_Oh. She noticed. Of course she did, she’s River_ , the Doctor thought. 

“A…while.” She really didn’t want to disclose how long. River didn’t need to know, it would only cause her to be worried and upset, and the Doctor didn’t need more people to pity her. She just needed to get out of Stormcage, find her fam, and find her TARDIS. 

River seemed to realize that she wouldn’t get more details than that. “Why didn’t you reach out earlier? Didn’t you know I was here?”

“Honestly, I had no idea where I was, let alone where I was. If I’d known, well, I would’ve made my escape must earlier! And I’m surprised you didn’t realize I was here, either!” 

“Yeah, yeah, but don’t forget I’m the one that got you out of the cell!” Jack chimed in, reminding the two women that he was still there, and the one that enabled their reunion. 

“Ah, yes, of course, Jack. Thank you.” The Doctor and River laughed at Jack’s sensitivity at being left out. 

The Doctor desperately wanted to stretch out her time with River, feeling it was some kind of gift. Perhaps to make up for some of the pain she’d gone through recently. But, escaping was paramount, and the guards would eventually make their rounds and notice the two extra people in River’s cell. It broke her hearts, again, but she’d have to say goodbye again. 

“River, we should…”

“Wait,” she cut off the Doctor’s goodbye, “before you go, we have got to do something with your hair, sweetie. It’s a mess.” 

The Doctor was not expecting that. 

“What?”

Jack cracked up at this. “You should’ve seen her when I first saw her in the cell! It was like a bird made a nest on her head!”

Offended, the Doctor defended herself. “Well excuse me for not prioritizing my hairstyle while IN JAIL,” she almost shouted. “I haven’t had a good hair wash in ages! And the regeneration energy helped a bit!”

“What do you mea—oh, spoilers, right. Never mind. Keep your secrets, sweetie. It’s only fair after all the ones I’ve kept from you.” River smiled at the Doctor’s apologetic shrug, then gestured for Jack to scoot off to the side so she could sit next to her wife. Taking the Doctor’s long, strawberry-blonde hair in her hands, she started to braid her hair. 

“Well, this is different,” Jack mused.

“For all of us!” the Doctor replied, smiling at her wife’s gentle touch. She had to admit, having River play with her hair was always pleasant. And it was nice to finally get her hair out of her face. Honestly, she hadn’t noticed how long it had grown. After a short time, River tied up the end of the long braid and admired her work. Jack applauded, quietly, at the final result. The Doctor reached back to touch the braid.

“Oh, brilliant. Thank you, River. I’ll have to learn how to do this!” 

Smiling at her adorable wife, River hoped that the Doctor would heal with the help of Jack and her new “fam”. There was only so much she could do to help, but getting her back to her friends was perhaps enough for now. River knew that saying goodbye would be hard. It always was. But perhaps, like removing a bandaid, getting it over quickly would be the best for both of them. 

“Are you ready, sweetie? Captain?” 

“No need to call me Sweetie Captain,” Jack replied with a wink and a smirk. 

The Doctor slapped his arm. The trio all laughed, and the Doctor nodded that yes, she was ready. Standing up, she grabbed River’s hands and pulled her up. Hugging her wonderfully clever and kind wife, the Doctor built up the courage to whisper in River’s ear a simple “goodbye” and “thank you” before breaking the embrace. She tried to hide her sad smile, but saw that River’s expression mirrored her own. 

The Doctor stepped back to Jack’s side, who’d secured the vortex manipulator on his wrist. Jack seemed about to give River a goodbye kiss but, reading the Doctor’s glare, decided against it in favor of another handshake. He thanked her for her assistance. “Glad to know the Doctor has such an incredible partner. Can’t say I’m not a little jealous…of both of you!” River, amused by Jack’s flirty antics, winked goodbye. 

Remembering River’s final request on Trenzalore, the Doctor put on a smile again and said, “See you around, River,” before pressing the button on the vortex manipulator to send her and Jack to 2020 Sheffield. The two time-travelers disappeared in a flash of blue light.

River stared at the space that the duo had occupied just seconds before, a wave of sadness hitting her, knowing that this Doctor probably would never see River again. But at least she could help her return to Earth. To her fam. River’s frown slowly grew back into a smile, relieved that the Doctor was still good at surrounding herself with good people. 

Picking her journal back up, River continued writing her entry, excited to include this new Doctor in her story. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This update took a while because I had final papers to write...and was figuring out which plotline I want this fic to follow, as I had several ideas floating around in my head, haha. Anyway, thanks again for reading! All your comments and kudoses (is that a word?) bring me such joy and push me to keep this story going. It's definitely longer than I thought it would be! Let me know what you're enjoying so far. :) I was thinking of including another old-companion cameo(s?) in the next chapters...what do you all think? 
> 
> Hope you're all staying safe and healthy! (Also, who else is loving the DW watch-alongs on Twitter?)


	7. Earth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the slow update, everyone. Just moved home, which was stressful af, as you can imagine. But now I'm in quarantine, so I'll try to finish this story soon! Haha.

A flash of blue in an alleyway signaled the arrival of the two time-travelers. The Doctor and Jack, feeling slightly ill from the trip, leaned against the building they appeared next to, trying to catch their breath.

“Sheesh, I still really hate this nasty time-travel method.”

“Hey! Beggars can’t be choosers!” Jack responded, offended yet again. “And see? We made it! 21st century, by the looks of it.” 

The two glanced around, looking out into the main sidewalk they were closest to. A steady stream of people walked past, sporting clothes that looked early-2000s. The Doctor, wanting to get a more accurate sense of when and where they were, licked the wall they’d just been leaning against.

Jack looked at her, disgusted. “What are you doing?”

“Figuring out where we are! Tastes a bit metallic, with a good dose of pollution and, hmm, what is this taste…ah, yes! Chips! I’d say we’re in London, sometime around 2020. Not sure of the month, I’ll need another taste…”

Jack pulled her back from the wall. “Or, you know, we could just ask someone? That’s a bit more hygienic, yeah?”

“Well, where’s the fun in that?” the Doctor complained, but she followed Jack out of the alleyway. She was hesitant to admit to him that her ability to sense time was a bit rusty after being confined in Stormcage for so long. She’d get back into the swing of things soon enough.

However, the Doctor was more frustrated with their location rather than their time. “We’re supposed to be in Sheffield…I’m hoping we at least got the date right, if not the city. It would be a bit awkward if we had to wait a couple years for the fam to show up with that TARDIS.”

Jack laughed at the idea of him and the Doctor living together for a a few years. He quickly came to the conclusion that they’d drive each other mad. Well, madder. Yeah, they’d best find the TARDIS.

Walking out to the sidewalk, the two picked out the first friendly-looking person they could. Jack asked the passerby what the date was, blaming his strange question on drinking too much the night before. The stranger replied that it was March 14, 2021. 

The Doctor’s polite smile promptly faded.

As the passerby went on her way, the Doctor stormed off, back into the alley they’d first arrived in. 

“Dammit! Dammit, dammit, dammit!” she yelled, kicking the wall. A string of curses, which Jack assumed to be in the Doctor’s native language, followed. After kicking the wall a few more times, she sunk to the ground, holding her knees to her body. Jack, having never seen the Doctor act quite this way before, didn’t know how to comfort her. 

A few minutes passed in tense silence. Jack stood at the mouth of the alley to discourage any curious pedestrians from checking in on them. At last he heard movement and turned back to the Doctor, who had gotten to her feet. She brushed the nonexistent dirt off her clothes, and cleared her throat.

“Erm, sorry about that. My temper’s been a bit…sensitive lately.” Jack noticed she didn’t make eye contact with him. She continued, “I just…I so want to be back. Back with my TARDIS, back with my fam. I’ve been locked up, my past is a mystery even to myself, I saw my home destroyed again…why couldn’t the universe just give me this?” her voice broke. “Why…why can’t I just have something good happen? Don’t I deserve some…some happiness?” 

Jack was stunned into silence. The Doctor was rarely so honest and vulnerable, let alone when she was upset. No tears ran down her face, but Jack could tell the Doctor was holding them back. 

Stepping closer to her, he put a hand on her shoulder; he felt a slight trembling. “Listen, Doctor, it’s okay to let out your frustrations. I’m just glad you took it out on the wall, and not on me!” he smiled, hoping to ease some of the pressure. “And I can’t even begin to tell you how many times this has happened to me—getting stuck in the wrong time—but it always turns out okay. We’ll be fine. And it’s just a year past our intended goal, right? We’ve been in worse situations!” 

The Doctor’s eyes betrayed the faint amusement she felt, remembering their ridiculous adventures. Yes, they had been in worse situations. Hell, she’d just been in a worse one! _Okay, Doctor,_ she told herself, _time to regroup. Gotta find a way back to the fam, even if it’s a bit later than planned. Damn vortex manipulators…but, as Jack said, beggars can’t be choosers. Gotta roll with it. At least I’m out of prison…small victories, Doctor, small victories._

Steeling herself, the Doctor shifted her focus to finding a way to Sheffield. Hopefully the fam was still there, and not too upset with her for being late. Nodding a silent thank you to Jack, she walked past him back into the crowded sidewalk. Looking around, she noticed a small cafe down the road from them. A nice cup of tea would help ground her and sitting down to chat sounded really nice after their intense escape. 

“Jack, how do you feel about a cuppa? We can brainstorm how to get to Sheffield from here. And, to be totally honest, I really just need some good food. You would not believe the stuff I was given in Stormcage. I could kill for a custard creme right now.” 

Amused, Jack agreed and followed her to the cafe. The two decided to sit outside; the Doctor had had enough of being indoors. They ordered a teapot to split between them, and two sandwiches. The Doctor seemed genuinely upset when the waiter said there were no custard cremes, but Jack quickly told her that they’d buy some in the shop as soon as they could. That seemed to cheer her up, judging by her goofy grin.

After the waiter left, the two friends found themselves having the first true breather since Jack blew up her prison cell. They simultaneously let out a long sigh, then laughed at their shared exhaustion and relief. 

“You know, even if we are off by a year, it is nice to be back on Earth, yeah?”

“Oh, yes, it’s brilliant.” Her eyes wandered around the cafe. Quietly, she added, “always knew I’d get back…” her tone very much saying the opposite. 

Jack let the comment slide. But he couldn’t put his curiosity to rest quite yet. Leaning forward, he asked her point-blank why she’d been in Stormcage.

Whatever level of relaxation the Doctor had achieved quickly went out the window. She sunk into her chair. “Can we…can we not talk about that for a bit longer?” she asked Jack.

Hearing the tiredness in her voice, Jack obliged. “Okay, fine. So, River. Good kisser, eh?”

Shocked by his abrupt change in topic, the Doctor sat up. “Jack! Do you really have to go straight to kissing?”

“Always.” 

Rolling her eyes, the Doctor didn’t directly answer the question. “Listen, I hadn’t seen my wife for a long time. Forgive me if I kissed her. Sheesh.”

Jack enjoyed seeing the Doctor frazzled, especially since the shadow over her eyes seemed to have dissipated. Encouraged, he pushed on. “Ah, I see…so it’s been a while, eh? How’s it being a woman? Any new…sensations?” Jack’s eyebrows wiggled suggestively at the last word. 

The Doctor tried to maintain her frustrated stare, but her laughter quickly won, and the two of them started cracking up. 

“I really hate you, sometimes, Jack. But I’m so glad to see you again. Thank you. I don’t think I properly thanked you yet. So…erm, thanks.”

Jack, pleased with the gratitude, shrugged. “No problem. I promised I’d be there for you. Even though you obviously ignored my warning about the Cyberman!” 

“Ugh,” the Doctor sighed, “don’t even get me started on that whole ordeal. What a mess. I didn’t mean to totally ignore you…my hand was forced. Trust me, it was no fun.”

“It’s all right. Well, I mean, it all turned out in the end, yeah?” 

“Yeah…sure. Right. Uh huh. Perfectly…fine.” 

They both knew she was lying. In the pause of conversation, the waiter arrived with their tea and food. Jack and the Doctor silently ate some of their sandwiches, and Jack poured them each a cup of tea from the pot.

Hoping to shift the mood again, Jack brought up some stories about his old Torchwood team. He tried to keep it light, just bringing up the memories that made him smile, hoping they’d have the same effect on the Doctor. And they did. She was happy for him, that he had such a great fam of his own. Jack admitted that just Gwen was left, though. The Doctor gave her condolences. Usually Jack brushed comments like that off, but he knew that the Doctor knew loss like he did. 

“Guess when we’re this old, we tend to say a lot of goodbyes, don’t we?”

“Yeah, Jack, yeah…we do. But you know what? We get so many more hellos than other people do, too. So many friends, so many lives touched, and so many lives that touch our own. I think it’s really a blessing as well as a curse, isn’t it?”

Jack nodded his head slowly, reflecting back on all the people he’d met, loved, and lost. Overall, he did feel lucky. But some losses still stung, and would for the rest of his long, long life. 

“So, who’s older now, Doctor? You or me?”

She flinched at his question, confusing Jack.

“What? Are you playing into that norm of it being rude to ask a woman her age?”

The Doctor remained silent. A minute passed. Then another. Eventually, she simply replied, “That’s a loaded question, Jack. One that I’m not quite sure I have the answer to quite yet.” She sat silently for a moment longer, then seemed to realize that Jack’s question was meant as a lighthearted joke. Shaking her head, she apologized. 

“No worries, Doctor. Sorry to have triggered you like that. We don’t have to talk about age. I hate talking about it, too. Do you see this? I have a gray hair! Gray, I tell you! Ridiculous.” Jack touched his hair protectively, making the Doctor smile. 

“You look fine, Jack, don’t worry. Did I tell you I was a white-haired Scotsman before this regeneration?”

“No way!” Jack replied, shocked. “And I missed it? Dammit.” He took a sip from his teacup, trying to imagine an old, Scottish Doctor. He smiled at the thought. “You know, I thought your friend Graham was you at first, you know, when I scooped your friends. Gave him a big ol’ kiss and hug. He was petrified!”

The Doctor let out a laugh at this. “He never told me! He an’ the others just said you were cheesy!” 

“Oh gosh, it was ridiculous! I was trying to scoop you, but got three—three!—companions instead?” Jack threw his arms in the air, expressing his frustration. “Why’re you so hard to pick up, Doctor?” he asked, a grin covering his face.

“I don’t like getting picked up!” 

The two looked at each other for a few seconds, and started laughing even more.

“Oh, shut up, Jack. You know that’s not what I meant.” The Doctor put her head in her hands, upset with herself for making the same verbal mistake again. Would she ever learn? 

Jack’s laugh slowly subsided. He looked at the Doctor, who had finally raised her head after being embarrassed. “So, what happened to Graham and the others? Why’d you send them home? And how’d this other TARDIS get in the mix?” Jack paused, noticing that the Doctor became tense. “Uh, sorry, can I ask? It’s just, there are a lot of pieces of the puzzle missing. I’m just curious how it all played out with the Cyberium and everything, is all…” he added. 

Shaking her head, the Doctor quietly responded. “No, no, it’s okay. I’ve been reflecting on the whole thing for the past ten years. About time I shared the story with someone else.” She paused here, mentally preparing herself to relive the horrible events on Gallifrey. 

“So, uh, first of all, the Master returned—”

The Doctor didn’t get another word in after that as Jack abruptly stood up, slamming his hands on the table.

“WHAT? THE MASTER? THAT ASSHOLE?”

She’d expected a strong response, but not one quite so loud. Gesturing for him to sit down, the Doctor told him to quiet down. Jack noticed that everyone in the cafe, and even some people on the sidewalk, were staring at him after his outburst. 

“Sorry. You know how much I hate him,” Jack said in defense. He started wiping up the tea, clearly shaken by the news. The Doctor nodded in understanding. 

After cleaning the table, Jack looked back at the Doctor, fury in his eyes. “Tell me everything.”

The Doctor was just about to dive into the story when she heard a quiet cough next to her. She and Jack both looked up at the stranger, both quickly realizing that the man was no stranger at all. It was Graham. 

Jack jumped out of his chair again, knocking more tea out of their cups. “Graham! Wow! Long time no see, Silver Fox! Here for another kiss?” The Doctor noticed he winked at Graham, who rolled his eyes in response. She smiled at the ridiculousness of the situation, but also because she was so glad to see her friend again. 

“Jack, don’t” she warned her flirtatious friend. Graham hadn’t noticed her yet, as he was just looking at Jack. She wondered why.

Jack simply shrugged in response to her warning, clearly amused that Graham had appeared right before them. The Doctor was pretty happy, too. At last, Graham looked over at her and their eyes met.

The man’s eyes grew wide as his brain caught up with what he was seeing. “D…Doc?”

She gave a little wave.

Graham sighed. “Oh _bloody hell_ , I’m seeing ghosts again, aren’t I?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thanks for reading! I must say that all the kudos/comments/hits really brighten my day. Hope you're enjoying the story so far. I'm guessing I'll write at least 3 more chapters, but we'll see.
> 
> Comments are always welcome; let me know what you think! Hope you're all staying safe and well. <3


	8. Catching Up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your patience! Grad school summer courses started, so I've been busy with readings and the like, but I wanted to get a chapter out for you all before you forget what happened earlier (and, tbh, before I forgot). So, thank you again for reading, and enjoy!

Graham’s exasperated comment was met with confusion.

“ _Ghosts_?” the Doctor asked, tilting her head.

Graham stared at her. A few seconds passed, then a few more. Jack stepped over to Graham’s side, waving his hand in front of the other man’s face. “Hello? Earth to Graham! You okay there, buddy?” 

This seemed to snap Graham out of his trance. He shook his head and blinked a few times, seemingly to dispel a strange image in his mind. Focusing his gaze on the Doctor again, who he was quickly realizing was not, in fact, a ghost, he asked her a question. 

“ _Where the hell have you been_?”

The joy on the Doctor’s face from seeing her old friend again faded at the tone in Graham’s voice. She’d expected some annoyance, but not this genuine anger. 

Jack also picked up on the tension between the two and decided to intervene. “Uh, Graham, why don’t you have a seat? We were just having some tea and catching up.”

The well-intentioned distraction went unacknowledged. “ _Catching up_?” he asked her accusingly. Graham was outright glaring at the Doctor, who was sitting still at the table, lost for words. After another pregnant pause, she cleared her throat. 

“Well that wasn’t the greeting I was expecting. Graham, you okay? It’s been a while, I know” she paused here again, her eyes leaving Graham and looking around at anything but her friends. “I uh, I’ve missed you” she added quietly, her voice thick with emotion. 

Graham’s eyes widened at that. He scoffed. “ _Missed_ us? Doc, it’s been a year! We thought you were dead.” His last word hug heavy in the air. 

“Dead? Why’d you think she was dead? Jack glanced over at the Doctor, who looked away guiltily. 

“Well, last we saw her she was leaving us to go on a suicide mission! The Death Particle or whatever. She was going to destroy the Master and Gallifrey, and herself in the process!” He took a deep breath, composing himself. “And anyway, we figured that if she’d survived,” he glared at her again, “she’d have let us know or come to find us. You know, like friends do. But instead I find her sitting comfy with another friend as if nothing happened.” 

The Doctor closed her eyes, flinching at his words. “Oh, I’m sorry Graham, I was just busy saving the entire universe! Sorry if I didn’t run back to Earth right after! Sorry if I need some time to heal!” she snapped. 

Graham winced at that; the Doctor rarely lost her temper with them. And true, she did witness the destruction of her planet. Maybe he should have been a bit more careful with his words. As the two of them calmed down, Graham notice that the Doctor in front of him was different, somehow. Not just in her reactions, but her appearance, too. Graham looked her over again, taking note of her long, braided hair. Odd…

In the momentary silence, Jack jumped in again. “Uh, guys, can we chill out a bit? I think there’s a lot to catch up on here and a lot of miscommunication…like that the Doctor’s been in jail for years and only just got out. Thanks to me, of course.” Jack grinned at his heroic story, but then turned to the Doctor. “And excuse me, but what does Graham mean about Gallifrey? What did you leave out of your story, Doctor?” 

“Woah, woah, woah” Graham said, holding up his hands, “what do you mean in jail?” 

“I uh, I did survive on Gallifrey. Ko Sharmus activated the particle in my place. I escaped on another TARDIS—Jack, that should answer your question about that—but then the Judoon rudely showed up in my TARDIS, and teleported me to a prison in space. Been stuck there until about, oh, an hour ago?” 

The two men glanced at each other, both surprised by the new information they’d heard. 

“Gallifrey?” Jack asked.

“Judoon?” Graham asked.

The Doctor sunk into her chair, and gestured for her friends to sit, too. “It’s a long story, you should have a seat.” 

Nodding in silent agreement, Graham grabbed an extra chair and sat at the small cafe table with the Doctor and Jack, still slightly shaking his head in disbelief. Most of his anger had faded, but he was still rattled from seeing his friend suddenly back from the dead. 

The Doctor also felt the tension between them lessen, and offered a small smile to her friends. Jack grinned in response, and Graham gave a hesitant half-smile back. Jack waved a waiter over so Graham could order something to drink or eat. “I’ll have a scotch,” Graham requested, which seemed to impress Jack. “What? I need a drink after all of this.”

“Not a bad idea at all, Silver Fox.” Jack turned to the waiter and told him to make it two. “Doc, what about you? Want a drink?” 

She shook her head no. After the waiter left, she looked over to Graham. “Why didn’t you notice me right away, Graham?”

“Oh, from the angle I was at, I could only see you from the back. Never seen you with long hair, and you weren’t wearing your funny blue coat…”

“Oi, it’s fashion! Look it up!”

“I don’t even want to know…” Jack mumbled as he took another bite of his food.

“Also, since you were with Jack, I just kind of assumed you were his date. You told us he was quite the flirt.”

Jack stopped eating. “ _Are_ we on a date?” he asked the Doctor cheekily, winking at her.

“No!” she snapped at him. 

The three friends laughed at that, and finally things were feeling more normal. The waiter arrived with the two drinks, and they had a little toast, the Doctor joining in with her teacup. 

“To old and new friends!” Jack toasted.

“To getting out of that horrid prison” the Doctor added.

“To not having to mourn anymore…” Graham said in a somber tone. 

At that, all three took a sip of their respective drinks in contemplative silence. After a bit, the Doctor spoke up.

“How’s, uh…how’s the rest of the fam?” Some nervousness tinted her voice. Going by Graham’s initial reaction to her reappearance and apparent death, she didn’t have high hopes for their immediate forgiveness, either. Then again, it wasn’t her fault! Being away for so long was totally out of her control. What had happened…it wasn’t her fault. None of it…she had no control…

“They’re okay.” Graham’s reply snapped her out of her dark train of thought. He continued, oblivious to the Doctor’s internal struggle. “Well, now they’re all right. It was rough at first. I’d built up some emotional resilience with the loss of Grace. And, I suppose, Ryan did as well. Yaz had the hardest time.” Graham noticed the Doctor’s shoulders drop at that. Although she had no choice in how the past several years played out, she did feel bad about leaving them, even when it was for their own good. “Ryan’s been studying, Yaz is working in the police, still.” Graham nursed his drink, then looked back up at the Doctor, noticing the exhaustion in her face and body language. “A whole year in jail, Doc? That’s, uh, that’s rough.”

“Um, about that…” Jack chimed in.

The Doctor gestured for him to stop talking, but Graham noticed.

“What?” he crossed his arms over his chest. “No more secrets, Doc. What aren’t you telling me?” 

The Doctor sighed. There wasn’t really a point to them knowing how long she’d been in prison beyond feeling pity for her. And she didn’t like being pitied. 

“Doc…how long were you in there? I have a feeling it takes more than a year to grow your hair out that much…”

She silently cursed his cleverness. Sighing in defeat, she confessed. “Ten years, give or take.” She kept talking, ignoring the shock on Graham’s face. Or, tried to ignore it. “You know, time gets fuzzy even for a Time Lord, er, Lady, when you’re stuck in a cell in some random corner of space for that long.” She took a sip of tea. “Well, I say corner, it was more like a…” Graham and Jack looked at each other, giving each other a look that seemed to say _here she goes again_. The Doctor noticed. “Oh, fine, I won’t bore you with the technicalities.”

Silence once again fell over the group. 

Finally, Graham moved. He stood up from his chair and walked over to the Doctor’s side. She looked up at him, confused. 

“Stand up” he told her. 

Glancing at Jack in confusion, she was met with a knowing shrug. Humoring Graham, she stood up to face him.

His arms swung around her and pulled her into a tight hug. 

Surprised, the Doctor stood frozen in place. “Uh, Graham, thank you, but uh…it’s a little…tight” she said, becoming short of breath. 

Graham replied with a simple “shut up” and squeezed her tighter. The Doctor allowed herself to submit to the hug, bringing her arms up to pat Graham’s back. Yep, she was still awkward, but it was nice to finally hug him. 

“We missed you so much, love” Graham’s voice was husky with emotion. “I’m so relieved you’re back, safe and sound. Thank you for coming back, Doc. And I’m sorry for snapping at you.” After a few more seconds, she was released from the hug. Rubbing the back of her neck, she admitted that she was growing to like hugs after all. 

Jack was surprised to hear that she and Graham had never hugged before. “Who would’ve thought you’d be so opposed to PDA after seeing you kiss your wife like that?” he asked her, teasingly. The Doctor rolled her eyes at his comment, though she let out a short laugh, too. Until she noticed Graham’s shocked face again. Poor guy needed a break from all these revelations…She could relate. 

“Okay, listen. There’s still a lot more to the story of what happened on Gallifrey, what happened before, and what happened after. I’ll tell you everything, you guys deserve the truth. I know I’ve been, er, secretive in the past, but I want to be more open with my fam.” The Doctor rubbed her arms in discomfort. _Was it always this hard to be honest with emotions?_ she asked herself. Steeling herself, she continued. “I’d rather tell the story all at once, though, with everyone together. It’s not a fun one to tell.” She looked her two friends in the eyes, then down at her feet, still encased in the prison’s uniform shoes. “You guys know by now that this regeneration of mine is a bit…awkward. I’m trying, I promise. But you have to be gentle with me, deal?”

The two men nodded. Graham still looked confused, though. “Graham? What’s the matter?”

“What the hell is a ‘regeneration’?”

The Doctor ran a hand over her face. “Oh dear, I really didn’t tell you much at all, did I? Oops.” She noticed jack’s judgmental look, but ignored him. 

Graham and the Doctor sat back down, and the trio finished their drinks and food in comfortable silence. The waiter came to their table with the bill, and the two time travelers looked at Graham. 

“You two don’t have money, do you?” He was met with two shrugs and sly smiles. Laughing, he paid for the food and drinks. 

“Thanks, Graham. I’ve so missed Earth food. And there’s nothing a cuppa can’t fix!” the Doctor said, her tone more cheerful than when they’d first sat down at the cafe. “All right, fam, let’s plan our how to get back to the rest of the fam! And my TARDIS! Oh gosh, I miss her…”

“Would you stop saying ‘fam’, Doc? It’s so out of fashion” Jack requested. The Doctor gave him a sharp look.

“Says the guy wearing the same coat for goodness knows how many centuries…” she sassily replied. Graham didn’t totally understand the reference, but laughed anyway because of Jack’s highly offended expression. 

“Oh!” the Doctor clapped her hands together surprising the two men. “Clothes! I need clothes before I meet the others!” She gestured to her outfit, or rather, her uniform. It wouldn’t do at all, and not just because of the ugly design. Painful memories felt attached to the fabric, bleeding through to her skin. “Graham, do you know where I could buy some clothes here?” She was starting to feel itchy all over, desperate to get the clothes off now that she’d had time to register that she was free. She couldn’t admit that weakness to them, though. Being open with her friends would be a slow process she admitted to herself. Plus, she knew Jack would make some kind of rude sexual innuendo if she so much as mentioned taking off an item of clothing. 

Graham raised an eyebrow at her. “Uh, for your fashion sense…maybe the second hand shop? Like when we first met. I think there’ll be something to match your, um, eclectic taste.” Jack let out a laugh at that; the Doctor frowned. “I’m guessing I have to pay again. No worries, though. It’ll be my welcome home gift to you, love.” Graham gave her a smile, his whole heart behind it. 

His kind words warmed the Doctor’s hearts, and she was ecstatic to finally get a new look. “ _Allons-y_!” she shouted out of nostalgia, surprising the cafe patrons around them, who were clearly tired of all the drama coming from their table. Jack grinned, Graham sighed. 

Things were okay. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so, so much to all who have read, commented, and left kudos. Really, it means a lot and is super motivating. If you're enjoying the story, please leave a comment and let me know what you're liking (or disliking, haha). I hope you all are staying safe and healthy! <3
> 
> Also: I'm thinking of adding some other cameos still. Does that sound good, or should I keep things...in the family? Hahaha


	9. Update/Author's Note

Hi all! It's been a while, I know...but I think it goes without saying that the past several months have been really tough. I also had a lot of personal stuff going on that kept me busy (luckily mostly positive stuff). 

I saw the trailer for the New Year's DW episode, and I was pleased to see some of my predictions look like they'll happen (though not necessarily just like I wrote, lol). So exciting!! It also made me remember I have this incomplete story. So, I wanted to test the water and see if people would like me to try and finish up the story before the New Year's special? No promises, but I feel bad that I've kept you all waiting with a few cliff hangers, haha.

Long story short, please comment if you'd like to read the end of the fic! If there's interest, I'll pick it back up. <3

I hope everyone is doing well and staying safe!   
-Lotte


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